Cuba and ESTA

[wowzz]

Just been reading Simon Calder's weekly column.

I didn't realise this, but if you have been to Cuba since 2011, you can no longer apply for an ESTA online. You have to pay £137 and have an in-person interview in order to be given a visa.

Worth knowing if you are planning a cruise to Canada and the US, and have been to Cuba recently. 

[pennib]

Yes,I read that too but bear in mind that the Cuba cut off date is 11 years ago. Quite some time!!

[wowzz]

9 minutes ago, pennib said:

Yes,I read that too but bear in mind that the Cuba cut off date is 11 years ago. Quite some time!!

It actually says if you have visited Cuba SINCE 2011. Big difference !

[Son of Anarchy]

35 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Just been reading Simon Calder's weekly column.

I didn't realise this, but if you have been to Cuba since 2011, you can no longer apply for an ESTA online. You have to pay £137 and have an in-person interview in order to be given a visa.

Worth knowing if you are planning a cruise to Canada and the US, and have been to Cuba recently. 

Well, that's put me off going there.  Bit of a shame really.  Dad went there back in the pre Castro days and afterwards.  He always said that Castro ruined the place.

[Bill Y]

40 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Just been reading Simon Calder's weekly column.

I didn't realise this, but if you have been to Cuba since 2011, you can no longer apply for an ESTA online. You have to pay £137 and have an in-person interview in order to be given a visa.

Worth knowing if you are planning a cruise to Canada and the US, and have been to Cuba recently. 

Interesting,

 

I wonder how many people know this, My Son has visited Cuba within the last few years, applied for an ESTA in May, flew to NYC visited Canada then returned to NYC without problem.

[Thejuggler]

And is it an 'honesty box' situation.  If you have a new passport which is now blank of stamps would the US know if you have been to Cuba if you don't reveal it when applying for an ESTA?

[david63]

Probably cheaper to get a new passport

[wowzz]

30 minutes ago, Thejuggler said:

And is it an 'honesty box' situation.  If you have a new passport which is now blank of stamps would the US know if you have been to Cuba if you don't reveal it when applying for an ESTA?

That was my thinking as well.

[Bazrat]

56 minutes ago, Son of Anarchy said:

Well, that's put me off going there.  Bit of a shame really.  Dad went there back in the pre Castro days and afterwards.  He always said that Castro ruined the place.

He probably did ruin the place if you was in the Mafia who ran the gambling and the prostitutions rackets.

[terrierjohn]

8 minutes ago, Bazrat said:

He probably did ruin the place if you was in the Mafia who ran the gambling and the prostitutions rackets.

So the hundreds of thousands of Cubans fleeing to the US were leaving a paradise behind were they?

[david05]

There is some confusion because there are some reports to the effect that you are OK if you visited Cuba before 12 January 2021 (which is the date when Cuba was most recently designated a state sponsor of terrorism) eg https://e-visa.co.uk/usa/news/list-countries-sponsors-terrorism.

[Son of Anarchy]

31 minutes ago, Bazrat said:

He probably did ruin the place if you was in the Mafia who ran the gambling and the prostitutions rackets.

Las Vegas by the seaside

[Thejuggler]

From ESTA site.

 

How does Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism impact my travel to the United States using my approved ESTA? 

If a traveler is found to have visited a country designated as State Sponsor of Terrorism, the traveler is no longer eligible to participate in the Visa Wavier Program and must apply for a visa to enter the United States.

[majortom10]

18 minutes ago, david05 said:

There is some confusion because there are some reports to the effect that you are OK if you visited Cuba before 12 January 2021 (which is the date when Cuba was most recently designated a state sponsor of terrorism) eg https://e-visa.co.uk/usa/news/list-countries-sponsors-terrorism.

I had e mail from TA  only this week because we are going to New York in May next year on QM2. They categorically stated that if I had visited Cuba since March 2011 then you have to apply for a visa and an ESTA would not be granted.

[david05]

11 minutes ago, Thejuggler said:

From ESTA site.

 

How does Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism impact my travel to the United States using my approved ESTA? 

If a traveler is found to have visited a country designated as State Sponsor of Terrorism, the traveler is no longer eligible to participate in the Visa Wavier Program and must apply for a visa to enter the United States.

The US French Embassy https://fr.usembassy.gov/visas/visa-waiver-program/ says:

• Additionally, if you have traveled or resided in Cuba on or after January 12, 2021, please be advised that you will need a visa in order to travel to the U.S.

Confusion reigns. Thank goodness I have never travelled to Cuba!

[wowzz]

56 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

I had e mail from TA  only this week because we are going to New York in May next year on QM2. They categorically stated that if I had visited Cuba since March 2011 then you have to apply for a visa and an ESTA would not be granted.

As previously stated, say you had visited Cuba in 2013 on a TUI package, and have subsequently received a new passport,  how would the US know that you had visited Cuba ? 

[LifeonMars]

The IATA Visa check website also states

Passengers who have been in Cuba on or after 12 January 2021 are not allowed to enter with an ESTA authorization.

Passengers who have been in Korea (Dem. People's Rep.), Iran or Syria on or after 1 March 2011 are not allowed to enter with an ESTA authorization.

https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/US-USA-passport-visa-health-travel-document-requirements.htm

 

also the  USA Embassy and Consulate in France has this on their website

• The Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015 (the Act) put new restrictions on the use of the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) for certain categories of travelers.
• Under the 2015 Act, Visa Waiver Program nationals — including French nationals — who have traveled to Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and/or Yemen since March 1, 2011 AND anyone who is a dual national of Iran, Iraq, Sudan, or Syria are ineligible to use ESTA. These restrictions apply to previous ESTA approvals and all current and future ESTA applications. VWP nationals (including French nationals) who have previously received ESTA approvals, but who meet one of these criteria, are no longer eligible to use ESTA.
• Additionally, if you have traveled or resided in Cuba on or after January 12, 2021, please be advised that you will need a visa in order to travel to the U.S.
• The law does not prohibit individuals in these categories from traveling to the United States, but a traveler not eligible for ESTA cannot be admitted into the country without a valid U.S. visa in his or her passport.
• The U.S. Embassy Paris strongly recommends that affected individuals apply for a B1/B2 non-immigrant visa as far in advance of their intended travel as possible to avoid any disruption to their travel plans. The B1/B2 visa can be used for the same purposes as ESTA (e.g., tourism, business, conferences, etc.). Detailed, step-by-step instructions on how to apply for a non-immigrant visa are available in French and in English on the Embassy’s website.
• More information about Visa Waiver Program and ESTA.
• Frequently asked questions regarding the Visa Waiver Program and ESTA.

 

https://fr.usembassy.gov/visas/nonimmigrant-visas/restrictions-use-esta-affecting-french-nationals/

 

Edited October 7, 2022 by LifeonMars

[jeanlyon]

Unbelievable when you think that the US are still running Guantanamo Bay there.

[majortom10]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

As previously stated, say you had visited Cuba in 2013 on a TUI package, and have subsequently received a new passport,  how would the US know that you had visited Cuba ? 

I dont honestly know as that is something that doesnt concern me but you never know what info is shared between UK and US without us knowing.

[Snow Hill]

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

As previously stated, say you had visited Cuba in 2013 on a TUI package, and have subsequently received a new passport,  how would the US know that you had visited Cuba ? 

Precisely, PNR records are anonymised after 6 months and deleted after 5 years, so if you have no stamps in your passport how will they know whether you have traveled there or not. I can’t see that someone who as been for 2 week all inclusive break with TUI to Cuba some years ago is going to be of any threat to the US. 

[Trimone]

Simon Calder talks how the wind blows, his poor advice during the Ash cloud cost us a fortune.

[Bazrat]

6 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

So the hundreds of thousands of Cubans fleeing to the US were leaving a paradise behind were they?

That's why the population rose up during the bay of pigs liberation 

[Bazrat]

6 hours ago, Son of Anarchy said:

Las Vegas by the seaside

Haha never thought of that

[tring]

Oh dear, we are booked on Aurora to New York and back next Sept.  Not sure when we last went to Cuba, but it we did wander into the Cuban embassy in Pria, Cape Verde a few days after Castro died to ask if we could sign their condolence book, so better keep quiet about that if we need an interview 🙂

 

[tring]

We last went in Feb 2018, but not too worried as feel the US will likely change that rule now Trump has gone.  A lot of Canadians go to Cuba as it is a cheap holiday for them, like Spain was/is for us, so they will have lots of probs providing visas now the restrictions are being removed - though last I heard Canada still had some restrictions.  Will contact my Canadian relatives to find out how it is working there.